Social care help 'vital' for carers

Carers rely on appropriate support from social services in order to keep going, an expert has warned.

'If a carer's own health suffers it leads to greater need and costs further down the line,' said Helga Pile, national officer for care workers at union Unison.

She was speaking after figures released by the Health and Social Care Information Centre showed almost one in 10 carers (9%) are not happy with the support that they and the person they care for receive from social services.

Homecare ‘has become a nightmare of rushed flying visits'

Of these, 4% said they were 'very or extremely' dissatisfied, according to the poll, which included 58,000 carers in England.

However, one in three carers said they are 'very or extremely' satisfied with the support they get from social services.

A similar proportion, a third, said they spend over 100 hours every week looking after the person they care for.

When questioned on how much control they feel they have over their own daily lives, three-fifths said they have 'some but not enough' control, while one in eight said they have 'none'.

Unison's Helga Pile commented: 'Privatisation and cuts mean for many, homecare has become a nightmare of rushed flying visits and an endless turnover of workers struggling to stay in the job on zero hours contracts and poverty pay.'

Carers make 'a huge contribution to society'

Care and Support Minister Norman Lamb pledged that the Government wants to 'do all we can to support' carers, saying that they do 'an incredible job of supporting their loved ones' and that they make 'a huge contribution to society'.

He continued: 'We are setting out a modern duty for local authorities in the Care Bill to enable people to access information and advice they need, including info and advice on caring.

'And, for the first time, carers will receive the same right to support as the person they look after - councils will have a duty to meet their eligible support needs and the impact of their caring responsibilities will have to be considered in assessments.'

Copyright Press Association 2013